1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a valet for supporting articles of clothing and related accessories in a convenient and readily accessible position to enable such articles to be readily at hand when dressing or for supporting such articles temporarily when not in use. The valet includes a stand having a vertically disposed tubular standard telescopically receiving a post with unique latch structures to retain the post in extended position and to prevent it from being totally extracted from the tubular standard which receives it when in collapsed position. The upper end of the post is provided with a laterally extending support arm that can be pivoted from a vertical stored position to a horizontal operative position and securely retained in this position for supporting a plurality of clothes hangers or other articles. The support arm is pivotal and slidable for nesting within a lateral recess in the side of the post to enable the post to be completely telescoped into the tubular standard.
2. Information Disclosure Statement
Valets of various types and configurations have been provided by which articles of clothing and accessories are supported in a position for ready access. Such devices usually include a supporting stand having an upwardly extending component with various arrangements being provided to support articles of clothing and accessories therefrom. Such known devices are usually rigid structures, occupy considerable space and frequently become unbalanced when articles of clothing are supported from the upper end of the device. Also, various types of telescoping stands for various purposes are well-known. The following U.S. patents are exemplary of the state of the art in this field of endeavor.
483,275 PA0 2,483,242 PA0 2,654,484 PA0 2,854,303 PA0 2,957,187
None of the above patents disclose the specific structural details of the present invention which provide a balanced, free-standing, collapsible valet in accordance with the disclosure in this application.